The Pittsburgh Steelers visit the Baltimore Ravens for NFL Thursday Night Football. Kickoff is at 8:25 p.m. ET. Watch the live stream or listen to the radio broadcast via the links provided below.
Baltimore plays in their first game since releasing running back Ray Rice. The three-time Pro Bowler was cut from the team after video emerged Monday showing Rice striking his then-fiancée, Janay Palmer. The NFL subsequently suspended Rice indefinitely, putting in question his future as a professional football player.
"(The video) changed things, of course," Ravens coach Jim Harbaugh said Monday after Rice's release, via ESPN. "It made things a little bit different."
While the Rice situation was a distraction for his team, the players understand their focus must be on Thursday's game against a division rival. Rice's absence from the team leaves running backs Bernard Pierce and Justin Forsett competing for touches, with neither tailback yet to make a definitive claim for the starting job.
Harbaugh benched Pierce in the second quarter for fumbling, which led to Forsett finishing the game against the Cincinnati Bengals with 11 carries for 70 yards and a touchdown.
Baltimore's offense struggled overall in the 23-16, with quarterback Joe Flacco completing 35 of 62 passes for 345 yards, one touchdown and one interception. His lone touchdown pass of the night came from a throw to veteran receiver Steve Smith, who dropped several catches earlier in the game.
"We dropped all the gimmies, but we caught all the hard ones," Smith said. "Things can happen and you've got to take responsibility. This receiver group has a lot of opportunities to be great, and I think we overthought things and ran before we had the ball. We've just got to play better."
Pittsburgh, meanwhile, opened the 2014 season with a 30-27 win against the Cleveland Browns. Although the Steelers earned the victory, they blew a 24-point halftime lead.
"People probably didn't like the way we came out with a 'W,' but we came out with a 'W,'" said cornerback Ike Taylor. "So nobody has really nothing to talk about except for the small things, and we'll correct them."
Watch the live stream HERE, or listen to the radio broadcast HERE (PIT) and HERE (BAL).
